Many of the big name online games released in recent years launched with a subscription, but later converted over to a free-to-play revenue model. With The Elder Scrolls Online, Bethesda believed it had a strong enough game world and player base to support a subscription model. However, 10 months on from the PC launch and the free-to-play switch is being made.

From March 17, PC gamers will no longer be required to pay a subscription charge in order to login and play the game. Bethesda also announced that The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited will be launching on PS4 and Xbox One on June 9, and neither of those games will carry a mandatory subscription charge either. You’ll just purchase the game and play as much as you want. PC gamers will automatically gain access to all Tamriel Unlimited content as and when it becomes available.

Going forward Bethesda will earn revenue from The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited in a couple of ways. The first is through downloadable content packs you can purchase, and a Crown Store for convenient item buying and customization options. The second is the introduction of an ESO Plus premium membership.

ESO Plus will require a subscription which buys game time in 30, 90, or 180-day chunks that auto-renew. This unlocks all downloadable content without a further charge as well as adding a 10% bonus to XP, gold gain, crafting research, and inspiration. With the introduction of the Crown Store mentioned above, ESO is also getting a new in-game currency called crowns. The number of days you subscribe to ESO Plus for in advance determines how many crowns Bethesda gifts you. Basically you get 1,500 crowns added to your account every month.

The premium membership will cost $15 per month as the mandatory membership costs today. If after the transition to this new model you decide to stop subscribing, you don’t lose any items or rewards, but the downloadable content is locked and your crowns allowance is stopped.

By making this switch it’s clear that Bethesda is hoping to boost player numbers significantly this year. It also makes the console launch a simpler affair because you are just purchasing a game as normal with no further costs incurred unless you choose them.